Reading response - Essay Example

Essay: Reading response Implications of Fukuyama’s Post-apocalyptic prophecies In Our Posthuman Future, Fukuyama creates anxiety by the argument that biotechnology could alter humanity as we know it for the worst. He explores the ethical philosophy history in search of “Factor X” which human beings are made up of and calls out for global legal restrictions to clearly draw the boundaries between unacceptable and acceptable uses of biotechnology.Fukuyama comes with what he refers to as “some plausible pathways” into the future.

In the first pathway, Fukuyama paints our future by exploring the discovery of the effect of brain structure and genetics on the behaviour of human beings. In the second pathway, he attempts to analyse and predict the manipulation of behaviour and emotions through the use of pharmacology. The third pathway explores ways in which biotechnology will influence the politics of the future by prolongation of life. The fourth pathway focuses on genetic engineering, which explores the introduction of “designer babies”, which could bring a number of ethical and technical issues.

This paper however makes an analysis of Our Posthuman Future and seeks to explain the implications of Fukuyama’s post-apocalyptic prophecies, their relationship with scenarios presented in (2003, p.556) and their plausibility.Fukuyama makes a consideration of the association of totalitarian states and eugenics and further addresses considerations in religion and finally makes an inspection of utilitarian concerns, his alternative for economic considerations. In the production of designer babies, we are likely to encounter the danger that biotechnology will aid in enforcement of politically correct methods of thinking and feeling.

There will also be a surplus of “zero sum” engineering whereby for instance a person designed to be a faster runner will have no competitive advantage against other designs of faster runners in a race.A progress in the field of genomics leading to the creation of drugs that could alter the generic profile of individuals with minimal side effects(if any at all).This scenario is more likely to happen since as we speak, pharmacologists have come up with energy and pleasure enhancing drugs that are altering the way people behave.

Steroids for example are known to enhance performance and change one’s moods. They may cause depression and to others they would feel extremely high, whereas others can feel so down for no apparent reason. In second scenario of stem cell research, we realize that stem cell research is alive and vibrant in places like California whose voters approved stem cell research program of $3 billion to accelerate it. The promise was that research on stem cell could be utilized in treatment of incurable injuries and diseases, by the regrowth of organs, tissues and even body parts.

Initially it looked like science fiction but this field of regenerative medicine would transform the above ideas into reality, in the very near future. The last scenario about elective genetic selection is also taking place whereby animal experiments have been tried to enhance such traits as muscle mass and growth rate. Though the aim of the research is to develop approaches of treating human conditions and diseases, it is also believed and possible that developments emanating from this type of research could also be broadly utilised in enhancement of traits instead of correction of deficiencies.

There is a very big possibility of one of these scenarios becoming plausible. The biotechnology world is amazing and with stem cell research, scientists are on the verge of regenerating tissue. Several major diseases are almost being conquered through the use of genomic medicine. However biotechnology is complicated as a moral issue since it has come with bad interwoven with good and the bad bit seems more subtle than nuclear proliferation.Referenceshttps://www.carnegiecouncil.org/studio/multimedia/20020510/index.

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